What’s The 401?!?!

World On Wheels #4 - Cars Of The Week

We kick off this week’s edition of World On Wheels with an amazing story about a New York man who retired to Portugal and purchased some land with a barn on it.  Nobody had bothered to check what was in the barn in years, but this man…being from New York and all….had to find out what was going on in there.  When he broke through the steel welded doors…what did he find?  A collection of rare classic cars valued at $35 million NZ dollars!  WOW!  Pictures of the rest of the lot can be found over at Attuworld.  This is truly an incredible story.

Attuworld also brings us…via 99 Express, the new Bentley Continental Spur.  Our car of the week.  Hit the link for more info.

Will the Audi A7 one day hold the spot of “Car of the Week”?  That remains to be seen, as the car remains to be seen.  Audi is keeping this one under wraps. 

As always, with gas prices rising by the day, hybrids stay in the news, and it looks like the American consumer is about ready to make the leap of faith into hybrid technology.  A survey run by J.D. Power and Associates revealed that 72 percent of recent car buyers are considering purchasing a hybrid as their next car.  But should potential buyers wait before hopping on the hybrid bandwagon?  It appears that the technology will only improve.  Evidence of this is the Chevrolet Volt which is scheduled to debut in 2010.  The Volt is a plug-in vehicle that is expected to be able to run for 40 miles on the hybrid engine before switching to a gas engine.  That means many of us won’t have to use a drop of gasoline.  Think about that Rhode Islanders?  You would have to literally drive out of the state before your gas engine would kick in!  The idea that consumers might be better of waiting on the hybrid technology is no surprise.  Early adopters tend to pay a higher price for a lower quality product, especially in terms of technology which often becomes obsolete overnight.  Here are five more next generation electric cars that are due to hit the market in the next few years.  Some of these are frighteningly ugly.  No matter what we think, however, the car is going to be changing in the next half-decade.  Whether they get smaller, or more efficient, the big gas guzzlers that drove the 90’s and early 21st Century are going to become a thing of the past. 

In the meantime, if you’re in the market for a new car now….it’s a good time to buy.  Slow demand is making dealers desperate, and they’re swinging deals to move cars.  If you do buy something that lacks hybrid technology, however, it would probably be wise to go for a small car.  There’s always the Nissan Cube….yuck!  I think I’d rather roll around in a pimped out golf cart.

Finally, we brought you the story of the Honda Clarity last week, but now only a week later, it looks like the critics are out.  One of the first things that popped up in my eyes is the fact that the Clarity only goes from 0-60 in 10 seconds…that’s pretty slow for the average American driver.  We hop on the highway and want to be doing 60 about 3-4 seconds quicker.  The other issue is a lack of infrastructure to support the car.  There are only a few hydrogen fueling stations in the states.  Ultimately, it may be decades before the Clarity, or a car like it, is dominant on the streets of America.  Still, progress is being made….and you have to love that!